Sunday, September 22, 2013

Arrived on Temple Square!


One week complete! I can't believe it! So I want to share a funny moment from the week in each email...this one is short, but I still got a good laugh!

Sister Carvalho and I had TC (Teaching Center) time where we get on chat and answer questions from people all around the world who get on Mormon.org. This one guy gets on and says "hello" and Sister Carvalho and I each greet him back. He responds with surprise, saying "oh, there's two of you?" We laugh and answer "Yes! We work in companionships.  How are you today?"  We all start chatting a little bit about where he's from and then we ask him a question about his relationship with God.  It took him a while to respond and finally he says "wait....this isn't a dating website?"  I about died laughing. Hahaha.  Once we told him we were missionaries, he immediately signed off, haha.  No wonder he was surprised there were two of us!

So this week has been a big learning week!  I'm learning all about the history of the different buildings on Temple Square! It's crazy how much there is to know about each place and it's all so interesting!  My zone is serving in the Beehive House this transfer and I've probably given about 30 tours so far.  My first day there, I had to learn all of the information in about 2 hours so I could start giving tours.  Also, for those of you who have never heard of the Beehive House, like me before I got to T-Square, it's the home of Brigham Young who was our second prophet.  It's such a beautiful home and quite large, too! And I have one experience I HAVE to tell you guys!

Sister Carvalho and I were giving a tour in the Beehive House to a man who was in his late 40s or so and he was in SLC for a business trip and decided to stop by. We were going about our usual tour routine when we walked into the Reception Hall, which is near the end of tour, when I had a prompting to stop and talk about the picture of Jesus Christ on the wall that has an old Book of Mormon on a table underneath it.  We don't usually stop and talk about this part because I talk about the Book of Mormon at a different section of the tour and the picture of Christ is placed in such a way where everyone sees it when they walk by- I usually just give people a quiet moment to look at it we go through the tour, BUT I had the strongest feeling that I needed to say something about it!  So I stopped the tour by the picture and talked about Christ.  I explained how our religion is centered around Jesus Christ and His Atonement and that we are able to be completely cleansed of our sins through Him.  We then proceeded to show him the last two rooms on the tour.  Once finished we asked him if he had any questions and all he said was, "Well no, but where can I get one of those Book of Mormons?"  We were totally taken off guard!  He didn't talk much during the tour and seemed stand-offish, but we took him around front and gladly gave him a Book of Mormon.  We asked if we could stay in contact with him and he said he wanted to and gave us his info! We were so excited for him!  Also, that was my first referral ever on the mission! Woo! :)
There's a guy named Bob who got into a car accident when he was 18 and ever since he hasn't had full function of his brain. He sits in his wheelchair at one of the front desks in Temple Square every morning and we always chat with him for a bit.  He's a member and loves saying hello to people!  Yesterday morning, we walk by and ask him how he's doing, he responded with a smile and said, "I'm good, but not as great as a sister missionary with a name tag."  It was so sweet!  Later, I was still thinking about this one comment from Bob and I realized that being on a mission is one of the best things that I could be doing with my time.  Bob put it so simply, but it was exactly what I needed to hear :)   I'm so grateful for the opportunity to serve and to have Jesus Christ's name over my heart. It's an honor to spend my time teaching about the Gospel I love!  I wouldn't want to be anywhere else!

Work hard, do your best. I love you all!! 

My Trainer, Sister Carvalho!


Celebrating Brazilian Independence Day with ice cream!

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